The Medicine & Its Objects Workshop is delighted to announce
our first presenter of 2020:
Hiroko Kumaki
Doctoral Candidate, Department of Anthropology
“Intermediary Experts: Spreading the Philosophies of Radiological Protection”
Abstract: This chapter examines the shift in expertise of radiological health after the nuclear accident in Fukushima, Japan, as ordinary citizens were suddenly required to navigate data on radiation and make decisions for themselves on what to consider as “reasonable” exposure. It discusses the emergence of “intermediary experts,” who have worked with the exposed residents to understand the contamination in their environment and make decisions on how to live with radiation. I show that expertise has shifted from being confined to certain groups of paternalistic figures to being non-authoritative and open to those who become part of a network of actors working to accomplish certain agendas. As a result, the authority of conventional experts has diminished, while the expertise of radiological health has expanded in Japan after the nuclear accident. Nevertheless, despite acquiring significant scientific knowledge over the years, citizens continue to be left out of administrative decision-making processes regarding their health and well-being. Moreover, the expansion of expertise of radiological health has increasingly set the condition for health to become a compromise in Japan.
Discussant: David Ansari
Post-doctoral Teaching Fellow in the Social Sciences
Wednesday, January 8th
4:30 to 6:00 p.m.
Rosenwald 329
***Snacks and refreshments will be served.***
